How do I determine pricing for my online training business?

With Trainerize you are in complete control of what you charge your clients and you can test and make adjustments if needed. You can charge your clients what you wish. Trainers typically charge anywhere from $50 - $100/month for online training - however, pricing varies depending on many factors.

Trainerize costs less than $4/month per client, so you pocket the rest. Here are some rough guidelines for setting your price:

The following are some considerations when pricing your online training packages:

Pricing integrity vs. pricing for growth

This question is about whether to match your in-person training rates or to set new online prices. There are two schools of thought on this. One is that trainers should price the same online as they do for in person sessions, because a client is paying for their expertise, how training is delivered is irrelevant. This is the pricing integrity model.

The pricing for growth model says that since it takes less time to train a client online, trainers should charge less for online training in order to grow their client base more quickly.

Pricing integrity:

Upsides: Pricing this way reinforces your value because it doesn’t undercut your in-person training rates.Downsides: Slower business growth because clients find it expensive.

Pricing for growth:

Upsides: Faster business growth because a larger number of people can afford your services.Downsides: You make less revenue per client so you have to take on more clients to make the same amount of income.

Both of these arguments are valid and have their upsides and downsides. You’ll have to decide which school of thought you agree with before you set your prices.

How will you structure your prices?

When deciding on your pricing structure, there are a lot of variables. Our Paypal payment integration allows you to charge clients a flat fee or a recurring subscription.

Recurring: Will you charge as a subscription, on a recurring basis? Will your subscription be billed weekly or monthly? How many workouts will a client get every week? How much will the recurring fee be? Will you offer add-ons like weekly Skype consultation for a higher recurring fee?

Flat fee: Will you charge a set price for a defined plan over a set period of time? Will it be a 4 week plan, an 8 week plan or longer? Will you have multiple plans to choose from? How many total workouts will a client receive in each period?

It’s a good idea to think about your target client, their lifestyle and your style of training to come up with a fee structure that will work well for both you and your clients. Listen to your client’s feedback and adjust your offerings to reflect it, your prices don’t have to be set permanently, tweak your prices and offerings to find the right balance.

Who is your target client and how much can they afford to pay?

Determining who your target client is will help you decide how much to charge. When determining your target client, here are some questions to ask yourself:

Are you a high performance specialized trainer, or a sport-specific trainer? How rare is your skill-set and experience? What do other trainers in your specialized niche typically charge?

Is online training an add-on to your existing in-person training services? How much will you charge on top of your in-person rates as an add-on?

Are you focusing on one geographic area? What are the demographics of your area? Do people tend to have higher or lower incomes?

Is there one best way to price your services?

The simple answer to this question is no. Price is a major factor in a new client deciding to train with you and there are many ways to price your services. The best thing to do is consider all of the factors we’ve discussed here and decide on an initial pricing plan. Once your prices are set, listen to feedback from your clients! If they’re telling you your prices aren’t competitive, or that they’d rather be on a recurring plan than a flat fee system, make adjustments to your pricing to reflect what your clients want.

The goal is to find a balance in price that is fair for you and for your clients. You want to keep your clients happy and be fairly compensated for your training expertise.